3 die in head-on crash near Walker’s curve

By Carrie A. Mizell

No one survived a head-on collision Friday night on US 129 that stalled traffic near County Road 307.
David M. Pimental, 56, of Live Oak was driving a 1993 Chevrolet pickup truck north in the southbound lane of US 129 when his vehicle struck a 1996 Pontiac Grand Prix being driven by Billy Ray Pumphrey, 52, of Trenton. Pumphrey and his passenger, Douglas Wayne Burns, 43, of Newberry, were driving south on US 129 in the southbound lane when the accident occurred at 10:22 p.m.
According to Trooper Jessie W. Hoover of the Florida Highway Patrol, Pimental’s truck spun around counter clockwise on impact and came to a final stop facing in a southwesterly direction on US 129. Upon impact, Pumphrey’s vehicle spun around counter clockwise before coming to a final stop in a northerly direction on US 129’s southbound, grassy right of way.
Gilchrist County EMS arrived on scene and pronounced all three men involved in the accident deceased.
At the time of the accident, both drivers were reportedly wearing seatbelts.
However, Burns, who was a passenger in the Grand Prix, was not wearing a seatbelt when the accident occurred.